Device with self aligned gaps for capacitance reduction

ABSTRACT

A method for reducing capacitances between semiconductor device wirings is provided. A sacrificial layer is formed over a dielectric layer. A plurality of features are etched into the sacrificial layer and dielectric layer. The features are filled with a filler material. The sacrificial layer is removed, so that parts of the filler material remain exposed above a surface of the dielectric layer, where spaces are between the exposed parts of the filler material, where the spaces are in an area formerly occupied by the sacrificial layer. Widths of the spaces between the parts of the filler material are shrunk with a shrink sidewall deposition. Gaps are etched into the dielectric layer through the shrink sidewall deposition. The filler material and shrink sidewall deposition are removed.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a division of prior U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/291,672 entitled DEVICE WITH SELF ALIGNED GAPS FOR CAPACITANCEREDUCTION, filed on Nov. 30, 2005, by inventors Sadjadi et al., which isincorporated herein by reference and from which priority under 35 U.S.C.§ 120 is claimed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the formation of semiconductor devices.More particularly, the invention relates to the formation ofsemiconductor devices with gaps for reducing capacitance.

In semiconductor-based device (e.g., integrated circuits or flat paneldisplays) manufacturing, dual damascene structures may be used inconjunction with copper conductor material to reduce the RC delaysassociated with signal propagation in aluminum based materials used inprevious generation technologies. In dual damascene, instead of etchingthe conductor material, vias, and trenches may be etched into thedielectric material and filled with copper. The excess copper may beremoved by chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) leaving copper linesconnected by vias for signal transmission. To reduce the RC delays evenfurther, porous and non-porous low-k dielectric constant materials maybe used. In the specification and claims low-k is defined as k<3.0.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,297,125 discloses the use of air gaps to reducecapacitance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To achieve the foregoing and in accordance with the purpose of thepresent invention a method for reducing capacitances betweensemiconductor device wirings is provided. A sacrificial layer is formedover a dielectric layer. A plurality of features are etched into thesacrificial layer and dielectric layer. The features are filled with afiller material. The sacrificial layer is removed, so that parts of thefiller material remain exposed above a surface of the dielectric layer,where spaces are between the exposed parts of the filler material, wherethe spaces are in an area formerly occupied by the sacrificial layer.Widths of the spaces between the parts of the filler material are shrunkwith a shrink sidewall deposition. Gaps are etched into the dielectriclayer through the shrink sidewall deposition. The filler material andshrink sidewall deposition are removed.

In another manifestation of the invention a method for reducingcapacitances between semiconductor device wirings is provided. Asacrificial layer is formed over a dielectric layer. A plurality offeatures are etched into the sacrificial layer and dielectric layer. Thefeatures are filled with a filler material. The sacrificial layer isremoved, so that parts of the filler material remain exposed above asurface of the dielectric layer, where spaces are between the exposedparts of the filler material, where the spaces are in an area formerlyoccupied by the sacrificial layer. Widths of the spaces between theparts of the filler material are shrunk with a shrink sidewalldeposition. Gaps are etched into the dielectric layer through the shrinksidewall deposition. The filler material and shrink sidewall depositionare removed. The gaps are closed to form pockets from the gaps. Theclosing the gap comprises a plurality of cycles, where each cyclecomprises a bread loaf deposition phase and a bread loaf profile shapingphase. The features are filled with a conductive material.

In another manifestation of the invention an apparatus for reducingcapacitances between semiconductor devices for a dielectric layer overwhich a sacrificial layer has been placed is provided. A plasmaprocessing chamber, comprising a chamber wall forming a plasmaprocessing chamber enclosure, a substrate support for supporting asubstrate within the plasma processing chamber enclosure. a pressureregulator for regulating the pressure in the plasma processing chamberenclosure, at least one electrode for providing power to the plasmaprocessing chamber enclosure for sustaining a plasma, a gas inlet forproviding gas into the plasma processing chamber enclosure and, a gasoutlet for exhausting gas from the plasma processing chamber enclosureis provided. A gas source is in fluid connection with the gas inlet. Thegas source comprises a sacrificial layer etchant source, a dielectriclayer etchant source, a shrink deposition gas source, and a shrinkprofile shaping gas source. A controller is controllably connected tothe gas source and the at least one electrode. The controller comprisesat least one processor and computer readable media. The computerreadable media comprises computer readable code for etching featuresinto the sacrificial layer and dielectric layer, wherein the featuresare subsequently filled with a filler material, computer readable codefor removing the sacrificial layer, so that parts of the filler layerremain exposed above a surface of the dielectric layer, wherein spacesare between the exposed parts of the filler material, computer readablecode for shrinking widths of the spaces between parts of the fillermaterial with a shrink comprising at least one cycle, wherein each cyclecomprises computer readable code for providing a shrink deposition gasfrom the shrink deposition gas source, computer readable code forgenerating a plasma from the shrink deposition gas, computer readablecode for stopping the shrink deposition gas from the shrink depositiongas source, computer readable code for providing a shrink profileshaping gas from the shrink profile shaping gas source, computerreadable code for generating a plasma from the shrink profile shapinggas, and computer readable code for stopping the shrink profile shapinggas from the shrink profile shaping gas source, computer readable codefor etching gaps into the etch layer between contact structures throughthe sidewall deposition, and computer readable code for closing the gapsto form pockets in the gaps.

These and other features of the present invention will be described inmore detail below in the detailed description of the invention and inconjunction with the following figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is illustrated by way of example, and not by wayof limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings and in whichlike reference numerals refer to similar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 is a high level flow chart of a process that may be used in anembodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 2A-K are schematic cross-sectional and top views of a stackprocessed according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a more detailed flow of a step of shrinking spaces.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a plasma processing chamber that may beused in practicing the invention.

FIGS. 5A-B illustrate a computer system, which is suitable forimplementing a controller used in embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a more detailed flow chart of the one or more steps that areused to remove the filler material and shrink sidewalls and to formpockets from the gaps, form conductive contacts in the etched features,and form an interlayer dielectric layer.

FIG. 7 is a more detailed view of a multiphase cyclical process for thestep of forming the bread loaf closures while removing the shrinksidewalls.

FIGS. 8A-D are schematic cross-sectional views of a stack with wide andnarrow spaces.

FIGS. 9A-B are schematic cross-sectional views of a stack with wide andnarrow spaces in another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 10 is a multiphase cyclical process filling wide gaps but notnarrow gaps.

FIGS. 11A-D are schematic cross-sectional views of a stack with wide andnarrow spaces in another embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 12A-B are schematic cross-sectional views of a stack with wide andnarrow spaces in another embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference toa few preferred embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. In the following description, numerous specific details areset forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the presentinvention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, thatthe present invention may be practiced without some or all of thesespecific details. In other instances, well known process steps and/orstructures have not been described in detail in order to notunnecessarily obscure the present invention.

To facilitate understanding, FIG. 1 is a high level flow chart of aprocess that may be used in an embodiment of the invention. Asacrificial layer is formed over a dielectric layer (step 104). A maskis formed over the sacrificial layer (step 108). Features are etchedinto the sacrificial layer and dielectric layer (step 112). Preferably,the etched features are dual damascene features comprising vias andtrenches. Preferably, one mask is used to form vias and another mask isused to form trenches. The features are filled with a filler material(step 116). The sacrificial layer is removed (step 120). As a result,part of the filler material extends above the surface of the dielectriclayer with spaces between the parts of the filler material extendingabout the surface of the dielectric layer, wherein the spaces are in theareas formerly occupied by the sacrificial layer. Spaces between thefiller material are shrunk (step 124) by forming sidewall depositions onthe sides of the filler material, which form shrink sidewalls. Gaps areetched into the dielectric layer (step 128) through the shrunk spaces.The gaps are spaced between the etched features. One or more steps arethen used to remove the filler material and shrink sidewalls and to formpockets from the gaps, form conductive contacts in the etched features,and form an interlayer dielectric layer (step 132).

Example

In an example of an embodiment of the invention, a sacrificial layer isformed over a dielectric layer (step 104). FIG. 2A is a cross-sectionalview of a sacrificial layer 212 formed over a dielectric layer 208,which is over a substrate 204. In this example, the substrate 204 is asilicon wafer. The dielectric layer 208 is a low-k dielectric, such asorganosilicate glass. The sacrificial layer is silicon carbide. In otherembodiments, the sacrificial layer is at least one of SiC, SiN, SiOC, Hdoped SiOC, TiN, TaN, Ti, Ta, Si, and SiO2. More generally, thesacrificial layer is of any material, which may be selectively etchedwith respect to a filler material and the dielectric material and not tobe removed when stripping the mask materials used for forming the saidcontact structures as described below.

A mask 214 is formed over the sacrificial layer (step 108), as shown inFIG. 2B. Features 216 are etched into the sacrificial layer 212 and thedielectric layer 208 (step 112), as shown in FIG. 2C. In this example,the features 216 are dual damascene features with vias and self alignedtrenches, as shown. In one example of forming the dual damascenefeatures the mask 214, shown in FIG. 2B is a via mask. After etchingvias the mask 214 is removed and a trench mask is provided for etchingtrenches.

The etched features are filled with a filler material 218 (step 116), asshown in FIG. 2D. The filler material may be photoresist or some otherpolymer or filler material. In the preferred embodiment, the fillermaterial is selected from at least one of a hydrocarbon, or dopedhydrocarbon such as fluorinated hydrocarbons, amorphous Carbon,diamond-like carbon. More generally, the filler material is any materialof the form H_(x)C_(y), H_(x)C_(y)F_(z), H_(x)C_(y)S_(z) or anycombination of C, H, F, Si with various impurities.

The sacrificial layer is then removed (step 120), as shown in FIG. 2E.As a result of the removal of the sacrificial layer, parts of the fillermaterial 218 extend above the surface of the dielectric layer 208, wherespaces 217 are formed between the parts of the filler material 218 thatextend above the surface of the dielectric layer 208, where the spaces217 are in the area formerly occupied by the sacrificial layer. Thespaces 217 have widths “w1”, as shown in FIG. 2E. To remove thesacrificial layer without removing the filler material 218 or dielectriclayer 208, the sacrificial layer must be a material that may be removedwithout removing the filler material 218 or the dielectric layer 208.For example, the sacrificial layer may be silicon carbide, while thedielectric layer is an organosilicate glass.

The spaces between the filler material 218 are shrunk (step 112), asshown in FIG. 2F, by forming shrink sidewalls 215 on the sides walls ofthe exposed filler material 218 to form reduced spaces 220 with reducedwidths “w2”. The forming the shrink sidewalls 215 to form reduced spacesmay be performed by placing the substrate in a processing chamber.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a processing chamber 400 that may be usedto form the shrink sidewalls. The plasma processing chamber 400comprises confinement rings 402, an upper electrode 404, a lowerelectrode 408, a gas source 410, and an exhaust pump 420. The gas source410 comprises a shrink deposition gas source 412 and a shrink profilegas source 416. The gas source may comprise additional gas sources suchas an etch gas source 418 and a gap closure gas source 422 to allowetching, stripping, and gap closing to be done in situ in the samechamber. Within plasma processing chamber 400, the substrate 204 ispositioned upon the lower electrode 408. The lower electrode 408incorporates a suitable substrate chucking mechanism (e.g.,electrostatic, mechanical clamping, or the like) for holding thesubstrate 204. The reactor top 428 incorporates the upper electrode 404disposed immediately opposite the lower electrode 408. The upperelectrode 404, lower electrode 408, and confinement rings 402 define theconfined plasma volume. Gas is supplied to the confined plasma volume bythe gas source 410 and is exhausted from the confined plasma volumethrough the confinement rings 402 and an exhaust port by the exhaustpump 420. A first RF source 444 is electrically connected to the upperelectrode 404. A second RF source 448 is electrically connected to thelower electrode 408. Chamber walls 452 surround the confinement rings402, the upper electrode 404, and the lower electrode 408. Both thefirst RF source 444 and the second RF source 448 may comprise a 27 MHzpower source and a 2 MHz power source. Different combinations ofconnecting RF power to the electrode are possible. In the case of LamResearch Corporation's Dual Frequency Capacitive (DFC) System, made byLAM Research Corporation™ of Fremont, Calif., which may be used in apreferred embodiment of the invention, both the 27 MHz and 2 MHz powersources make up the second RF power source 448 connected to the lowerelectrode, and the upper electrode is grounded. In other embodiments,the RF power source may have a frequency up to 300 MHz. A controller 435is controllably connected to the RF sources 444, 448, exhaust pump 420,and the gas source 410. The DFC System would be used when the layer tobe etched 208 is a dielectric layer, such as silicon oxide or organosilicate glass.

FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate a computer system 1300, which is suitable forimplementing a controller 435 used in embodiments of the presentinvention. FIG. 5A shows one possible physical form of the computersystem. Of course, the computer system may have many physical formsranging from an integrated circuit, a printed circuit board, and a smallhandheld device up to a huge super computer. Computer system 1300includes a monitor 1302, a display 1304, a housing 1306, a disk drive1308, a keyboard 1310, and a mouse 1312. Disk 1314 is acomputer-readable medium used to transfer data to and from computersystem 1300.

FIG. 5B is an example of a block diagram for computer system 1300.Attached to system bus 1320 is a wide variety of subsystems.Processor(s) 1322 (also referred to as central processing units, orCPUs) are coupled to storage devices, including memory 1324. Memory 1324includes random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). As iswell known in the art, ROM acts to transfer data and instructionsuni-directionally to the CPU and RAM is used typically to transfer dataand instructions in a bi-directional manner. Both of these types ofmemories may include any suitable of the computer-readable mediadescribed below. A fixed disk 1326 is also coupled bi-directionally toCPU 1322; it provides additional data storage capacity and may alsoinclude any of the computer-readable media described below. Fixed disk1326 may be used to store programs, data, and the like and is typicallya secondary storage medium (such as a hard disk) that is slower thanprimary storage. It will be appreciated that the information retainedwithin fixed disk 1326 may, in appropriate cases, be incorporated instandard fashion as virtual memory in memory 1324. Removable disk 1314may take the form of any of the computer-readable media described below.

CPU 1322 is also coupled to a variety of input/output devices, such asdisplay 1304, keyboard 1310, mouse 1312, and speakers 1330. In general,an input/output device may be any of: video displays, track balls, mice,keyboards, microphones, touch-sensitive displays, transducer cardreaders, magnetic or paper tape readers, tablets, styluses, voice orhandwriting recognizers, biometrics readers, or other computers. CPU1322 optionally may be coupled to another computer or telecommunicationsnetwork using network interface 1340. With such a network interface, itis contemplated that the CPU might receive information from the network,or might output information to the network in the course of performingthe above-described method steps. Furthermore, method embodiments of thepresent invention may execute solely upon CPU 1322 or may execute over anetwork such as the Internet in conjunction with a remote CPU thatshares a portion of the processing.

In addition, embodiments of the present invention further relate tocomputer storage products with a computer-readable medium that havecomputer code thereon for performing various computer-implementedoperations. The media and computer code may be those specially designedand constructed for the purposes of the present invention, or they maybe of the kind well known and available to those having skill in thecomputer software arts. Examples of computer-readable media include, butare not limited to: magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, andmagnetic tape; optical media such as CD-ROMs and holographic devices;magneto-optical media such as floptical disks; and hardware devices thatare specially configured to store and execute program code, such asapplication-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), programmable logicdevices (PLDs) and ROM and RAM devices. Examples of computer codeinclude machine code, such as produced by a compiler, and filescontaining higher level code that are executed by a computer using aninterpreter. Computer readable media may also be computer codetransmitted by a computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave andrepresenting a sequence of instructions that are executable by aprocessor.

FIG. 3 is a more detailed flow chart of the step of shrinking the spacesbetween the filler material 218 (step 124). As shown in FIG. 3, theshrinking the spaces comprises a plurality of cycles of a cyclic processcomprising a shrink deposition phase (step 304) and profile shapingphase (step 308).

Preferably, the shrink deposition phase (step 304) uses a deposition gascomprising at least one of a combination of CF₄ and H₂ or a combinationof CH₃F and N₂ or C_(x)F_(y) or C_(x)H_(y)F_(z) or C_(x)H_(y) with anoxidizing or reducing additive such as hydrogen, nitrogen, or oxygen,and carrier gases such as He, Ar, Ne, Kr, Xe etc. More generally, thedeposition gas comprises at least one of hydrocarbon, fluorocarbon, andhydrofluorocarbon. More preferably, the deposition gas further comprisesa carrier gas, such as argon or xenon. More preferably, the depositiongas further comprises at least one of an oxidizing additive and areducing additive, such as O₂, H₂, or NH₃.

An example of a shrink deposition phase (step 304) provides a flow of150 sccm CH₃F, 75 sccm N₂, and 100 sccm Ar. The pressure is set to 80mTorr. The substrate is maintained at a temperature of 20° C. The secondRF source 448 provides 400 Watts at a frequency of 27 MHz and 0 Watts afrequency of 2 MHz. During the deposition phase the deposition gas isprovided, the deposition gas is transformed into a plasma, and then thedeposition gas is stopped.

Preferably, the shrink profile shaping stage uses a profile shaping gascomprising at least one of C_(x)F_(y) and NF₃ and C_(x)H_(y) andC_(x)H_(y)F_(z). More preferably, the profile shaping gas furthercomprises a carrier gas, such as argon or xenon. More preferably, theprofile shaping gas further comprises at least one of an oxidizingadditive and a reducing additive, such as O₂, H₂, or NH₃. As a result,the profile shaping gas is different than the deposition gas.

An example of the shrink profile shaping phase (step 308) provides ahalogen (i.e. fluorine, bromine, chlorine) containing hydrocarbon gas,such as 100 sccm CF₄. In this example, CF₄ is the only gas providedduring the profile shaping. A pressure of 20 mTorr is provided to thechamber. The second RF source 448 provides 600 Watts at a frequency of27 MHz and 0 Watts a frequency of 2 MHz. During the profile shapingphase the profile shaping gas is provided, the profile shaping gas istransformed into a plasma, and then the profile shaping gas is stopped.

Preferably, the process is performed for between 2 to 20 cycles. Morepreferably, the process is performed between 3 to 10 cycles. Thecombination of deposition and profile shaping over a plurality of cyclesallows for the formation of vertical sidewalls for the shrink.Preferably, the vertical sidewalls are sidewalls that from bottom to topmake an angle between 88° to 90° with the bottom of the space.

Preferably, the shrink sidewalls cause widths of the spaces to bereduced by between 5-80%. More preferably, the shrink sidewalls causethe widths of the spaces to be reduced by between 5-50%. The cyclicalcycle may have additional deposition and/or shaping phases or may haveother additional phases.

Gaps are etched into the dielectric layer 208 through the reduced spacesbetween the shrink sidewalls 215 to form gaps 224, as shown in FIG. 2G.A conventional etch recipe for etching the dielectric layer 208 is used.

One or more steps are then used to remove the filler material and shrinksidewalls and to form pockets from the gaps, form conductive contacts inthe etched features, and form an interlayer dielectric layer (step 132).FIG. 6 is a more detailed flow chart of the one or more steps that arethen used to remove the filler material and shrink sidewalls and to formpockets from the gaps, form conductive contacts in the etched features,and form an interlayer dielectric layer (step 132).

In this example, closures 228 are formed and the deposited sidewalls areremoved (step 604), as shown in FIG. 2H to form pockets 232. In thisexample, the pockets are filled with air to lower the dielectricconstant. The pockets 232 may be filled with various gases so that theyare gas filled, which are called gas pockets. More generally, thepockets may be filled with a fluid, such as a gas or liquid. The volumeof each pocket 232 is almost equal to the volume of the gap in which thepocket is located, and at least half the volume of the gap in which thepocket is located.

FIG. 7 is a more detailed view of a multiphase cyclical process for thestep of forming the bread loaf closures while removing the shrinksidewalls (step 604). A bread loaf deposition phase (step 704) isperformed. This phase provides a deposition on sidewalls of the gaps.During the deposition phase a deposition gas is provided, a plasma isformed from the deposition gas, and then the deposition gas is stopped.A bread loaf profile shaping phase (step 708) is then provided. Thisphase shapes the profile of the deposition to form bread loaf closures.During the bread loaf profile shaping phase a bread loaf profile shapinggas is provided, a plasma is formed from the bread loaf profile shapinggas, then the bread loaf profile shaping gas is stopped. In addition,this phase is used to remove the shrink sidewalls. Preferably, thiscycle is repeated from 3 to 20 times. The multiphase and multiple cycleprocess is able to provide a bread loaf closure in the gap below the topsurface of the dielectric layer.

In this embodiment, the deposited sidewalls 215 are removed when theclosures 228 are formed. The advantage of forming the bread loafclosures while removing the shrink sidewalls avoids a subsequent shrinksidewall removal, which could damage the bread loaf closures. However,other embodiments may remove the shrink sidewalls separately through aprocess that does not damage the bread loaf closures, such as using aCMP process.

It is desirable to form the bread loaf closure in the gap, so that theclosure is below the top surface of the etch layer. One advantage ofthis is that a subsequent CMP process will not damage such closures. Itis believed that a multiphase and/or multiple cycle process is anadvantageous process for forming such closures in the gap.

The filler material is then removed (step 608), as shown in FIG. 2I. Aconventional ashing process may be used to remove the filler material.The etched features are filled with a metallic material 236 (step 612),such as copper, to form metal contacts, using conventional metal fillingprocesses, as shown in FIG. 2J. The bread loaf closures prevent themetallic material from filling the pockets 232.

The table below provides various combinations of sacrificial layermaterials and filler materials. Duo is a hydrocarbon material withsilicon. The organic polymer may be amorphous carbon, photoresist, orbottom antireflective coating (BARC). The combinations allow thesacrificial layer to be selectively removed with respect to the fillermaterial and dielectric layer using either a plasma etch or wet stripand the filler material to be selectively removed with respect to thedielectric layer using an oxidizing, reducing, or wet strip.

Sacrificial materials Filler materials SiN Organic Polymer or TEOS a-SiOrganic Polymer TEOS Organic Polymer Duo Organic Polymer SiC OrganicPolymer a-Si Duo TiN Organic Polymer TaN Organic Polymer

An interlayer dielectric (ILD) 240 is formed over the dielectric layer208, contacts, and bread loaf closures 228 (step 616), as shown in FIG.2K. Conventional methods of forming the ILD, such as spin on or CVD maybe used.

This process allows for alignment of the pockets with the features. Thefeature shrink process allows the formation of pockets that havecritical dimensions that are smaller than critical dimensions of thelithography process used. In this example, the trench width is theminimum critical dimension possible for the lithographic process used.The shrink process allows for a further reduction of the criticaldimensions of the feature size. Without the shrink, the etching of thegap may allow the contact structure to be exposed to the etching of thegap, which would damage the contact structure.

In addition, this process allows the dielectric to be one of manydifferent dielectric materials, wherein the process disclosed in U.S.Pat. No. 6,297,125 is limited regarding the dielectric materials thatcan be used and requires a barrier layer to protect the contact, whichmay increase the dielectric constant.

In processes where the contacts are separated by a large distance,additional steps may be required. FIG. 8A is a cross-sectional view of astack 800 with sacrificial layer 812 formed over a dielectric layer 808,which is over a substrate 804, into which dual damascene features havebeen etched. A thin space 818 is between a first dual damascene feature816 a and a second dual damascene feature 816 b. A wide space 820 isbetween the second dual damascene feature 816 b and a third dualdamascene feature 816 c.

FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view of the stack 800 after the dualdamascene features have been filled with a filler material 824, thesacrificial layer has been removed, shrink sidewalls 815 have beenformed, and gaps have been etched. In the areas of the regular spaces,narrow gaps 826 have been formed. In the area where there was a widespace a wide gap 828 has been formed.

FIG. 8C is a cross-sectional view of the stack 800 after closures 832are formed and the shrink sidewalls are removed. Because the wide gap828 is so wide, the closures 832 do not close the wide gap 820.

FIG. 8D is a cross-sectional view of the stack 800 after the fillermaterial is removed and the dual damascene features are filled with aconductive material 836. Because a the wide gap has not been closed, inthe conductive material fills the wide gap, which is not desired.

Various additional steps may be used to prevent the formation of a widegap filled with conductive material.

FIG. 9A is a cross-sectional view of the stack 900 after the dualdamascene features have been filled with a filler material 924, thesacrificial layer has been removed, shrink sidewalls 915 have beenformed, and gaps have been etched into the dielectric layer 908 over thesubstrate 904. In the areas of the regular spaces, narrow gaps 926 havebeen formed. In the area where there was a wide space a wide gap 928 hasbeen formed.

A cyclical deposition process is used that selectively fills wide gaps928, while not filling narrow gaps 926. FIG. 10 is a flow chart of acyclical deposition process that is used to fill the wide gaps 928without filling the narrow gaps 926. A gap deposition phase 1004deposits material in the gaps (step 1004). A gap deposition shapingphase shapes the deposit so that no net deposit occurs in the narrow gapwhile a deposition remains in the wide gap (step 1008).

Preferably, the gap deposition phase (step 1004) uses a deposition gascomprising at least one of a combination of CF₄ and H₂ or a combinationof CH₃F and N₂ or C_(x)F_(y) or C_(x)H_(y)F_(z) with an oxidizing orreducing additive such as hydrogen, nitrogen, or oxygen, and carriergases such as He, Ar, Ne, Kr, Xe etc. More generally, the deposition gascomprises at least one of hydrocarbon, fluorocarbon, andhydrofluorocarbon. More preferably, the deposition gas further comprisesa carrier gas, such as argon or xenon. More preferably, the depositiongas further comprises at least one of an oxidizing additive and areducing additive, such as O₂, H₂, or NH₃.

Preferably, the gap deposition shaping phase (step 1008) uses adeposition shaping gas comprising at least one of C_(x)F_(y) and NF₃ andC_(x)H_(y)F_(z). More preferably, the deposition shaping gas furthercomprises a carrier gas, such as argon or xenon. More preferably, theprofile shaping gas further comprises at least one of an oxidizingadditive and a reducing additive, such as O₂, H₂, or NH₃.

FIG. 9B is a cross sectional view of the stack after the cyclicaldeposition process is complete. The wide gap has been filled with adeposition 932, while the narrower gaps have not been filled. The fillermaterial 924 is removed and the dual damascene features are filled witha conductive material. The deposition 932 keeps the conductive materialout of the wide gap.

In one embodiment the deposition 932 may be left in the wide gap to actas a dielectric in the final product. The deposition would then bechosen to be low-K material. In another embodiment, the deposition 932may be removed and the wide gap closed by the subsequent ILD layer toform a wide pocket.

In another embodiment, after the features are etched into the dielectriclayer 1108 (step 112), a mask 1124 is formed over the features, whichcovers the narrow spaces while exposing the wide spaces 1120, as shownin FIG. 11A. Preferably, the sacrificial material in the wide spaces iscompletely exposed, as shown in FIG. 11A. The dielectric layer 1108 ispart of a stack formed by a sacrificial layer 1112 over the dielectriclayer 1108 over a substrate 1104. The part of the sacrificial layer 1112exposed by the opening in the mask 1124 is removed, as shown in FIG.11B. The mask is removed and the filler material 1124 is provided, whichfills the features and the part of the sacrificial layer that wasremoved. The remaining sacrificial layer is then removed, as shown inFIG. 11C. The spaces between the filler material are then shrunk (step124) and gaps 1126 are etched into the dielectric layer (step 128), asshown in FIG. 11D. The filler material 1124 over the wide space preventsgaps from being etched into the dielectric layer 1108 at the wide space.

In another embodiment, after the spaces are shrunk (step 124) a mask1236 is formed over the wide space 1228 of a stack 1200 but not over thenarrow spaces, as shown in FIG. 12A. The gaps are etched into thedielectric layer 1208 over the substrate 1204 of the stack betweensidewall shrink 1215 adjacent to filler material 1224, as shown in FIG.12B. The mask 1236 prevents etching of the wide spaces, while gaps areetched in the narrow spaces.

While this invention has been described in terms of several preferredembodiments, there are alterations, modifications, permutations, andvarious substitute equivalents, which fall within the scope of thisinvention. It should also be noted that there are many alternative waysof implementing the methods and apparatuses of the present invention. Itis therefore intended that the following appended claims be interpretedas including all such alterations, modifications, permutations, andvarious substitute equivalents as fall within the true spirit and scopeof the present invention.

1-19. (canceled)
 20. An apparatus for reducing capacitances betweensemiconductor devices for a dielectric layer over which a sacrificiallayer has been placed, comprising: a plasma processing chamber,comprising: a chamber wall forming a plasma processing chamberenclosure; a substrate support for supporting a substrate within theplasma processing chamber enclosure; a pressure regulator for regulatingthe pressure in the plasma processing chamber enclosure; at least oneelectrode for providing power to the plasma processing chamber enclosurefor sustaining a plasma; a gas inlet for providing gas into the plasmaprocessing chamber enclosure; and a gas outlet for exhausting gas fromthe plasma processing chamber enclosure; a gas source in fluidconnection with the gas inlet, comprising; a sacrificial layer etchantsource; a dielectric layer etchant source; a shrink deposition gassource; and a shrink profile shaping gas source; a controllercontrollably connected to the gas source and the at least one electrode,comprising: at least one processor; and computer readable mediacomprising: computer readable code for etching features into thesacrificial layer and dielectric layer, wherein the features aresubsequently filled with a filler material; computer readable code forremoving the sacrificial layer, so that parts of the filler materialremain exposed above a surface of the dielectric layer, wherein spacesare between the exposed parts of the filler material; computer readablecode for shrinking widths of the spaces between parts of the fillermaterial with a shrink providing a sidewall deposition comprising atleast one cycle, wherein each cycle comprises: computer readable codefor providing a shrink deposition gas from the shrink deposition gassource; computer readable code for generating a plasma from the shrinkdeposition gas; computer readable code for stopping the shrinkdeposition gas from the shrink deposition gas source; computer readablecode for providing a shrink profile shaping gas from the shrink profileshaping gas source; computer readable code for generating a plasma fromthe shrink profile shaping gas; and computer readable code for stoppingthe shrink profile shaping gas from the shrink profile shaping gassource; computer readable code for etching gaps into the etch layerbetween contact structures through the sidewall deposition; and computerreadable code for closing the gaps to form pockets in the gaps.
 21. Theapparatus, as recited in claim 20, wherein each gap has a volume andeach pocket has a volume, wherein the volume of each pocket is at leasthalf the volume of the gap in which the pocket is located.
 22. Theapparatus, as recited in claim 21, wherein the deposition gas comprisesat least one of a hydrocarbon, fluorocarbon, and hydrofluorocarbon andthe profile shaping gas comprises at least one of C_(x)F_(y), NF₃,C_(x)H_(y) and C_(x)H_(y)F_(z).
 23. The apparatus, as recited in claim22, wherein the closing the gaps comprises a plurality of cycles,wherein each cycle comprises: a bread loaf deposition phase; and a breadloaf profile shaping phase.
 24. The apparatus, as recited in claim 23,wherein closing the gaps also removes the shrink sidewall deposition.25. The apparatus, as recited in claim 24, wherein the shrinking thewidths of the spaces shrinks the widths of the spaces by 5-80% andwherein the profile shaping phase shapes the shrink sidewall depositionto form vertical sidewalls.
 26. The apparatus, as recited in claim 23,wherein the computer readable media further comprises computer readablecode for removing the filler material after closing the gap.
 27. Theapparatus, as recited in claim 20, wherein the deposition gas comprisesat least one of a hydrocarbon, fluorocarbon, and hydrofluorocarbon andthe profile shaping gas comprises at least one of C_(x)F_(y), NF₃,C_(x)H_(y) and C_(x)H_(y)F_(z).
 28. The apparatus, as recited in claim20, wherein the closing the gaps comprises a plurality of cycles,wherein each cycle comprises: a bread loaf deposition phase; and a breadloaf profile shaping phase.
 29. The apparatus, as recited in claim 20,wherein closing the gaps also removes the shrink sidewall deposition.30. The apparatus, as recited in claim 20, wherein the shrinking thewidths of the spaces shrinks the widths of the spaces by 5-80% andwherein the profile shaping phase shapes the shrink sidewall depositionto form vertical sidewalls.
 31. The apparatus, as recited in claim 20,wherein the computer readable media further comprises computer readablecode for removing the filler material after closing the gap.